You hired an attorney to
represent you in a workers compensation case and a short time later you receive
a letter telling you to appear for YOUR deposition. Holy cow, what do you do now? You weren’t prepared for this.
Few things cause more
anxiety for a injured workers than attending a deposition for their workers
compensation case. Having been deposed myself and having taken over a
thousand depositions let me tell you that there's really no reason to be
nervous. With few exceptions, depositions in a Minnesota workers
compensation claims are incredibly informal affairs that last 1-2 hours.
However, they can be extremely important in winning or losing your case if you
don’t answer the questions truthfully, act like a jerk, or do not follow your attorney’s
advice.
Although every workers'
compensation case has a unique set of facts and legal issues, depositions of
injured workers usually follow a similar pattern and cover similar topics.
1. Identifying Information. Defense attorneys will ask you to provide a great
deal of information regarding yourself, including your:
- Full Name
- Maiden Name
- Nickname
- Current Address
- Names of Residents at Current Address
- Addresses During Last Five Years
- Marital Status and Name of Husband or Wife
- Names of Children and Other Dependents
- Driver's License Number
- Social Security Number
- Whether you are a citizen of the United States
- Whether you are legally able to work in the United States
- Educational History
- Criminal History
Although defense attorneys
ask several questions regarding injured workers' background and personal
history, the majority of these questions are intended to elicit general
information and allow the attorney to "get a feel" for the injured
worker. Defense attorneys always ask injured workers whether they have
been convicted of a felony, so don't be offended if you are asked this
question. You must disclose this information truthfully if asked during
your deposition; therefore, you should be sure to speak with your attorney
about any prior arrests or convictions before your deposition begins.
2. Previous Employment. Defense attorneys likely will ask you to provide the
following information regarding your employment history:
- Names of Prior Employers
- Addresses of Prior Employers
- Dates of Prior Employment
- Job Duties with Prior Employers
- Names of Immediate Supervisors with Prior Employers
- Whether you Suffered any Injuries with Prior Employers
- Reason you Ceased Employment with Prior Employers
If you are asked about any
prior on-the-job injuries, it is critical that you answer truthfully even if
you had a prior on-the-job injury. And this is true even if your prior
on-the-job injury was the same or similar to your current on-the-job injury.
Similarly, if you were terminated by any prior employers, you must disclose any
such terminations if you are asked. Defense attorneys can easily obtain
your prior medical and employment records, so lying to them or failing to
disclose this type of information likely will allow them to impeach you and
hurt your credibility.
3. Previous Medical History. Defense attorneys usually cover your medical history
very thoroughly. In so doing, they will usually ask you whether you have
suffered from any of the following:
- Prior Non-Work-Related Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Work-Related Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Automobile Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Motorcycle Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Pedestrian Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Slip-and-Fall Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Sports-Related Accidents/Injuries
- Prior Military-Related Accidents/Injuries
- Chronic Medical Conditions or Diseases
- Names of Prior Medical Providers
You must disclose information
regarding your past medical history if asked; therefore, if you have suffered
any of the above-referenced accidents or injuries (or any others), you should
speak with your attorney about them before your deposition. Insurance
companies have access to computerized records of injuries reported to any
insurance company, and defense attorneys generally are able to obtain prior
medical records, so there is no sense in lying about your prior medical history
when asked. You may be entitled to workers' compensation benefits even if
you suffered from a prior injury or medical condition, but if you lie or fail
to disclose this type of information when asked, you almost certainly will hurt
your chances of receiving workers' compensation benefits.
4. Description of On-the-Job Accident.
Workers' compensation in Minnesota
is a "no fault" system, so, with some exceptions, the cause of your
accident won't matter too much. Your attorney should discuss your
accident with you before your deposition, so if he or she does not, you should
be sure to discuss this with them if you are concerned about it for any reason.
5. Medical Treatment for On-the-Job Injuries.
You should be prepared to name all
of the doctors who have examined or treated you for your on-the-job injury
regardless of who sent you to each doctor. In addition, you should be
prepared to describe the type of treatment that each doctor provided and to
explain whether and how the treatment improved your condition.
6. Current Disability. Defense attorneys always ask injured workers to list
and explain their symptoms, and to explain how these symptoms limit their
ability to perform work of any kind. Along these lines, they will also
ask injured workers to explain what types of work and non-work-related activities
they could perform before their accidents but not after their accidents.
Finally, they usually ask injured workers what they have been doing in the
spare time since their accidents.
The two important rules in closing that I always tell my clients before depositions are: (1) give short answers; and (2) tell the truth. Most questions can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no", and perhaps a very brief explanation. Never volunteer information that hasn't been specifically asked. And tell the truth always - you never know if the carrier has been having an investigator follow you and perform video surveillance. If you say you haven't done something, and they have you on videotape doing it, the judge won't believe a word you say.
If your case has gotten to the point where you have a deposition scheduled, and don’t feel you are properly prepared, you should probably consult with attorney Thomas Atkinson at 651-333-3636 or visit us at www.mndisability.com Your consultation is FREE and we never charge a fee unless we recover benefits for you!
